VITAL FUNCTION IMPROVING AGENT CONTAINING D-SORBOSE AS ACTIVE CONSTITUENT, COMPOSITION CONTAINING THE SAME, AND FOOD AND DRINK OR THE LIKE CONTAINING THEM

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a D-sorbose-containing sweetener, especially a low calory sweetener, having an improved taste quality usable for food and drink in a wide range like sugar, by changing the taste quality.SOLUTION: In the D-sorbose-containing sweetener having an improved taste quality, D-sorbose is allowed to contain a sugar alcohol, and/or a highly sweet sweetener and/or a hexose and/or sucrose. The sugar alcohol is selected from a group comprising sorbitol, mannitol, lactitol, maltitol, xylitol and erythritol. The highly-sweet sweetener is selected from a group comprising aspartame, acesulfame K, sodium cyclamate, sodium saccharine, sucralose (R), stevia sweetener, dulcin, thaumatin, neotame and monellin. The hexose is selected from a group comprising glucose, fructose, D-tagatose and D-psicose. In the sweetener, the used amount of the sugar alcohol and/or the sucrose and/or the hexose is 5-2,000 pts.wt, and the used amount of the highly sweet sweetener is 0.003-5 pts.wt, with respect to 100 pts.wt D-sorbose.